It’s finally the time of year for Stingue week! We will be hosting the sixth annual Stingue Week from November 23rd-29th 2019! We can’t wait to see what you come up with!
The awesome art above for our prompts graphic was provided by the extremely talented @oryu404, thank you for letting us use your work! Give them some love, they deserve it.
Prompts:
Day 1, November 23rd: Heroic
Day 2, November 24th: Betrayal
Day 3, November 25th: Reminisce
Day 4, November 26th: Guilt
Day 5, November 27th: Union
Day 6, November 28th: Gratitude
Day 7, November 29th: AU
Rules:
Submit only your own work, don’t steal anyone else’s.
Feel free to submit anything, fanart, fanvideos, fanfics, manga panel colorings, gif edits, cosplay, etc. Everything is allowed, as long as it’s Sting x Rogue!
No need to follow the prompts, feel free to do your own thing! You also don’t need to participate in all of the days, do as many as you’d like!
Tag all triggers. This means things like depression, self harm, blood, abuse, etc. Same goes with NSFW.
Be sure to tag your post #stingueweek and #stingueweek2019 in the first few tags!
No bashing other ships or characters, this is to support Stingue, not to bring down anything else.
BROTP is allowed, although this is a ship week. OT3+ is also allowed, as long as Sting & Rogue are within the main focus.
HAVE FUN. Don’t stress yourself out over this event. If you don’t finish, that’s alright. We’ll take WIPs if you want. Late submissions are also totally fine, we’ll be taking them for a week or two afterwards.
If you have any questions, contact the blog directly, or you can DM @dreamingoffairys or @thedarkgodmogar!
You hum in response and tighten your grip on his hand. Not tight enough to hurt him, but tight enough to feel the faint pulse beneath your fingertips.
“Next month... will you go with me to Stonewall Inn?” The voice requests, ever full of life and promise.
“I’ll follow you anywhere, you know that...” You whisper back, without the need to break the comfortable quiet morning.
“I want... I want to...” The voice trails off into a smile. You don’t have to look at his face to know it’s there, but you do, because that smile makes you feel like you’re 6 years old again and invincible.
“I know, Honey.” You promise, squeezing the hand again. “And we will.” You’ve had this conversation enough times, travelled to Manhattan enough times with this same goal in mind. “We’ll thank them for being so brave, and paving the way to a world where we don’t have to hide.”
And with that, gloss-covered lips meet yours and you melt into one, all over again.
Stingue Week 2019 Prompt: AU
Home for the Holidays 2019 Prompt: Family
A collaboration by @mdelpin and @oryu404
AO3 | FF.Net | Next: Ch 2
Chance Encounter
Chapter 1
May 11, 2020
Rogue closed his eyes for what felt like only a moment, only to be pulled out of sleep by the soft whining noises of an infant. A short silence fell, and he almost got his hopes up that it was simply sleep talk, but of course, luck wasn’t on his side.
The whining repeated louder and more desperate to be heard. When no response was given, it quickly turned into a piercing wail. The staticky video monitor that sat on his nightstand called for his attention, but he stubbornly refused to reach for it yet. Holding his breath, he willed his son to go back to sleep on his own, but instead, the cry was quickly joined by a second one, and Rogue could only groan in frustration. Both twins were up now, and he was still so tired.
The last six months had been hell on his sleep schedule. He and Sting had been happily surprised when they’d heard from Minerva that they were going to have twins. In their excitement, however, they’d failed to consider how challenging that first year would be, especially with Sting just starting his first year of pediatric residency at the hospital.
Rogue decided to let their sons cry for a bit and see if they were able to put themselves back to sleep, but after several minutes had passed with the cries only growing more desperate, he knew it wasn’t going to happen. Eyes still shut tightly, he willed his body to move but then felt the bed shift as Sting rolled onto his stomach with a groan, covering his head with a pillow before finally getting up to check on Haku and Kuro.
Rogue smiled in appreciation and snuggled deeper into the covers, content in the knowledge that Sting was taking over. A few moments passed before he heard Sting’s sleepy voice come over the monitor.
“What are you little monsters up to? It’s not even light out,” Sting’s voice sounded loud through the monitor, giving Rogue a rather good idea of where he was standing.
The crying stopped instantly, replaced by curious coos as the boys recognized their father’s voice.
“Do you need changing?” Sting asked, and as Rogue heard the creak of the floorboards, he knew Sting had picked Haku up out of his crib.
“You have such a beautiful smile, Haku,” Sting murmured gently, “Oof, but that diaper has got to go, looks like you were busy. Smells like it too.”
Haku giggled as Sting changed his diaper, and Rogue felt his heart swell as he imagined Sting making funny faces at their son. He yawned and fought off the instinctual urge to get up and help. He reminded himself that he took care of them on his own every day, it was good to let Sting help out when he could. The sound of Kuro’s displeased wails at being kept waiting rang out. He heard the click of the changing table’s safety belt as Sting went to get Kuro.
“You wait right here, Haku, I’ll be right back with your brother.”
At first, Haku continued to coo happily until he realized Sting wasn’t there anymore then he began to wail as well. That decided it. Rogue reached out with his arm and turned the monitor off, muting the noise as much as possible. It wasn’t like Sting couldn’t handle it on his own.
Rogue tried not to focus on the sounds so he could go back to sleep as soon as possible before it was time to get up and start another day. It didn’t take long before those sounds weren’t coming from the baby monitor anymore. They traveled through the walls until they reached the bedroom. The mattress dipped next to him, and Rogue felt a weight far too light to be Sting’s plop on the bed next to him, followed by another similar weight, before a third, more familiar one filled up the bed.
When Rogue finally lifted his heavy eyelids, he stared right into a pair of wide-open eyes, their bright blue hue twinkling much too happily in the pale moonlight that slipped into the room through a gap between the curtains. A pacifier bobbed up and down rhythmically against chubby cheeks, and from behind it came a delighted hum.
He probably would have melted at the sight if it wasn’t the middle of the night, and he didn’t suffer from exhaustion as much as he did. Besides, this little hellion and his nearly identical partner in crime, who was waving around his favorite stuffed red dragon, were not supposed to be here right now.
“If you keep doing this, they’ll never get used to sleeping in their own room,” Rogue objected, even though the damage was already done, “and we’ll never get some decent sleep.”
Tiny fingers found their way to his face, probing around and tugging at some strands of his hair as if determined to prove that last statement. Rogue gently grabbed them and warded them off before he could be assaulted in thoughtless enthusiasm.
“They’re only six months old, babe, there’s plenty of time for them to get used to sleeping without us,” Sting countered, “The Magnolia Pediatrics Association recommends that babies sleep in their parents’ room for the first six to twelve months.”
Rogue made a face, thinking of spending another six months sleeping with the twins between them, or in cribs next to their bed. It was convenient to not have to get out of the bedroom to do nighttime baby care, and he absolutely loved sleeping with a tiny warm body curled up in his arms. However, he was far less thrilled about being woken by the involuntary spasms of small fists or the feeling of the soggy end of a suckled on plushie in his face.
“We have to start trying at some point. You have twelve-hour shifts, and neither one of us is getting any sleep,” Rogue argued half-heartedly.
“Shh, go back to sleep, I’ve got them,” Sting leaned over to give Rogue a soft kiss, changing the subject before it could turn into an argument. And as the babies shifted away from him and began to climb on his husband with joyous shrieks, Rogue did just that.
When he woke up again, the other side of the bed was empty, but he could smell the reviving scent of freshly brewed coffee as it wafted into his room.
The alarm clock displayed a time that made him want to hide under the warmth of the covers for a few more hours, but he got up anyway. Sting didn’t have much time left before he had to head out, and the familiar urge to use the bathroom made sure he didn’t stall any longer.
Still sleepy, he yawned and rubbed away at the sandy feeling in his eyes as he trudged into the dining room. The twins were in their high chairs, Kuro intensely focused on drinking from the bottle he was holding up all by himself, while Haku seemed to have given up on that and was diligently trying to pick up cheerios from the tray. Some of them had already landed on the floor, but they were easy to clean up. It was a simple way to keep the little one busy for a while, so Rogue didn’t mind in the slightest.
“Morning,” Sting greeted, cheerful as ever no matter the ungodly hour. He kissed Rogue’s cheek and placed a big mug of coffee, along with a bowl of cereal and milk on the table in front of him. “Right on time for breakfast!”
Rogue sat down next to Haku, already foreseeing what would happen once he ran out of cheerios, and blew some steam off his coffee. He took a tentative first sip to gauge the temperature and then a bigger one when he made sure it was safe.
“Thanks,” he smiled into the mug, “did you ever get back to sleep?”
“Nah, but that’s okay. I got some quality cuddling time with the monsters instead. They’ll probably be asleep by the time I get back tonight, so it’s a sacrifice I was willing to make.” Sting took a seat next to him with his own breakfast, placing a hand on his thigh and his head on Rogue’s shoulder, “I didn’t get to cuddle you though.”
“Eat,” ordered Rogue, softly headbutting him, “you sacrificed sleep, you can’t skip breakfast too. I’ll still be up when you get back.”
“Promise?” Sting grinned at him, his eyes alight with mischief as he moved his hand a little higher up Rogue’s thigh before squeezing firmly and settling to eat his breakfast.
Rogue rolled his eyes but couldn’t help the smile that teased his lips as he thought about the possibility of spending some alone time with Sting. He peered over at the boys, whose faces were already covered in a combination of formula and mushed up Cheerios and then back at Sting, who was wolfing down his breakfast in a bid to have enough time for a shower before work and sighed happily. This might very well be the most perfect moment he could recall in quite a while.
But as often happened, it was over before he had a chance to really enjoy it. Sting looked down at his watch and jumped out of his chair.
“Shit! Gotta jump in the shower, new rotation today, can’t afford to be late!”
Rogue tried to remember which rotation Sting was going to be working on now as he stood up from his chair but couldn’t remember. He hoped it was one of the good ones, knowing Sting had been itching to have more interaction with patients.
Haku and Kuro began to show signs of restlessness, so Rogue hurried his cleaning efforts, collecting all the dirty dishes and putting them in the sink for later. Grabbing a washcloth, he cleaned the twins’ faces quickly, taking them out of their high chairs and placing them on their tummies on the living room floor.
“Alexa, play children’s music,” Rogue cringed as the saccharin sweet sounds of Wheels on the Bus began to play in the background, but Haku and Kuro both lifted their heads up in wonder as they tried to find the source of the music.
Rogue hurried to get the basket of toys they kept next to their large sectional, reaching in to grab a large blanket with multiple items sewn to it. It was designed to stimulate and help develop an infant’s motor development, and it was Haku’s favorite toy at the moment.
Kuro had been fascinated by his red dragon plush from the moment he’d received it from his Grandpa Weiss. He took it with him everywhere and put up a fuss if it was ever removed from his chubby hands. Not even Haku was allowed to take it from him. Haku had been gifted a similar blue dragon, but he hadn’t really cared much about it yet.
Sting raced out of their bedroom, stopping only to kiss Rogue and tickle the boys’ sides gently before kissing the tops of their heads.
“Be good for Daddy!” he chattered at them before grabbing his work bag and waving to Rogue, “See you tonight!”
“Bye,” Rogue managed as the door closed loudly from Sting’s over-exuberant efforts. And just like that, Rogue’s day had begun. Looking down at his watch, he saw it was only five fifteen in the morning.
A/N: We are super excited to finally introduce you to this world we have been building for a while now, and have really fallen in love with! We'll follow a number of couples and characters on a very different kind of battlefield: adult life, and most notably parenthood!
As this is also an entry for both Stingue week and ftlgbtales home for the holidays, we will first introduce you to the lovely, and slightly chaotic Eucliffe household. Hope you enjoy! ^^- Burrito and Mdelpin -
Sting was lying in bed, shirtless and still awake at a time he should be sleeping. Rogue was at his side, sleeping as the sensible being he was, so that left the blond alone with his thoughts. Which were going down by the moment, unfortunately.
He was still sensitive about the war topic. Not that he was going to admit it openly but he couldn’t stop thinking he hadn’t done everything he could and should. He was better than he had been the immediate days after it, but sometimes the thoughts still dragged him to the ground. Tonight was one of those times.
So he was just laying there, looking at the ceiling and slowly dragging his hand up and down Rogue’s back when he felt him stirring and mumbling something.
“Are you awake?” He whispered, trying to avoid waking him up if he wasn’t already.
“You are thinking too loud to let me sleep. What’s up?”
“I was just thinking.”
“Don’t” Sting snorted at that.
“I tried. But it just… I don’t know. I can’t stop thinking if there isn’t anyone better for… this.”
“This?”
“The guild. Our friends. You. I don’t know. I want you all to be safe and happy but I don’t think I can do it. I would like to be some kind of… hero i guess? So I could make sure nothing happens to you or anyone else. But sure none of that and-”
A flick on his forehead stopped his babbling, startling him for a moment before he turned to look at Rogue. There was a strange look on his face and Sting wasn’t sure what to make of it. It seemed like he was touched, amused and a bit angry. A weird mix for his boyfriend indeed.
“You are being ridiculous.” Rogue said then, draping himself even closer. It wasn’t exactly what Sting wanted to hear, honestly.
“I know.” He sighed, turning his head to avoid his eyes.. “It just that-”
“Shut up.” As he said that, Rogue caught Sting’s face between his fingers and forced him to look back. “You are talking nonsense.”
And this time what he could see in his eyes left Sting speechless, since the main thing there was love and honestly he hadn’t been expecting it.
“I don’t need a hero. I can take care of myself. And so can everyone else. I don’t want a hero. I want you.”
And well, yeah, if he wasn’t speechless before he surely was now. As it was, the only thing he could do was lean until their foreheads touched and close his eyes. He hoped that would be enough. Maybe it was.
Stingue Week 2019
Prompts: Heroic, Betrayal, Reminisce, Guilt, Union, Gratitude, AU
AO3 | Full Story | Excerpt | Chapter 21
For @oryu404
Honesty (Excerpt from Chapter 21 of The Red Dragon)
Rogue lay on a blanket on the floor of the cave that had been their home for the last month or so, eyes wide open in the dark. This was but the latest in a series of caves they’d inhabited as they slowly made their way towards the island Natsu and Belserion had discovered.
Weisslogia couldn’t fly for very long periods, and whenever they moved from one place to another, he had to push himself so hard it took him months to recover and build up enough stamina to attempt the next move.
Rogue’s breathing came in ragged pants as he tried to distance himself from the vivid dream he’d just woken up from. It didn’t help that both his legs had begun to throb in agony. A flashback to the acid that had burned through parts of his body during his last battle. The phantom pain to his legs pulsated stronger than it had in several months.
He did everything he could to keep himself quiet, but the discomfort was more than he could bear. He felt like he couldn’t breathe, and upon noticing Sting sleeping restlessly nearby, he made a decision. Rogue shifted into his shadow form and swiftly moved towards the cave entrance.
He traveled up the mountain until he reached a flat area wide enough to not be dangerous. Releasing his magic, he sat on the edge, watching the stars in peaceful solitude. It had been a long time since he’d had some time alone, and he soon found himself relaxing as the dream lost its hold on him, and the pain began to ebb from his consciousness.
Everything had changed so much in the last nine months, one decision made in the heat of battle had managed to reshape his life forever, and although he wished things had gone differently, he couldn’t find it in his heart to regret it. It had been the right thing to do.
Deliora was dead, the war was officially over. Everything else was secondary. Rogue used his arms to push himself back from the edge, wincing as a sharp rock scratched at his legs, which now ended slightly below his knees.
He heard movement below him and sighed, already knowing who it was. Looking up to the sky once more, he enjoyed the peace while he still could.
Some minutes later, he saw Sting’s hands appear on the ledge and waited for the lecture that was sure to follow.
“What are you doing out here?” Sting demanded, “I looked everywhere for you.” Although his face was full of concern, Rogue could feel Sting’s fear flooding the bond, and it irritated him.
“Where did you think I was going to go?” Rogue heard the bitterness in his voice and quickly tried to back down. The last thing he wanted was yet another argument.
“Everything’s fine Sting, I just needed some fresh air.”
“You had another one of those dreams, didn’t you?”
Rogue shrugged his shoulders, not wanting to give it any importance. “It’s a beautiful night.”
“Don’t change the subject, you can’t just take off like that!” Sting chastised, “What if you get into a situation, and I’m not around to help?”
The again was implied, but Rogue heard it just as loudly as if it had been yelled, and he could feel the rage building inside him.
“I may need help to do some things, but I’m not an invalid,” he growled, “I got myself up this mountain on my own, and I still have my magic. I can take care of myself just fine, the only one who seems to think I’m helpless is you.”
“That’s not true.”
“Isn’t it?” Rogue snapped, “You hover over me constantly, do everything for me before I’ve even had a chance to try on my own.”
“And you’re too stubborn to ask for help!” Sting accused, running his fingers through his hair in frustration, “Even when it’s obvious you need it.”
Rogue’s eyes flashed but before he had a chance to retort Sting sat down next to him.
“You’re not the only one who has nightmares, you know,” the words were uttered in a resigned tone, but Rogue could still suss out their meaning, and it deflated his anger instantly. Made him realize that Sting was still frightened he might lose him at any moment.
“Sting —”
“You almost died, Rogue. Did you ever think of what that did to me?” Sting’s eyes had grown so large Rogue felt like he could swim in their depths.
And he felt bad because the truth was he hadn’t given any thought to anything but the fact that Deliora was in front of them, and if they got him, they could go home. And Rogue had wanted to go home desperately.
He missed their friends, and their nice warm bed, and his favorite bakery, but mostly, he missed the way things had been between them before they had gotten caught up in the fights of others. And now they were involved in one that was all their own.
“He promised me, Rogue.”
And there it was. The reason for their neverending fight. Sting was determined to blame Natsu for what had happened to him, and that pissed Rogue off. Not only was it unfair, but it completely undermined his role in what had happened.
“When are you going to accept that I was the one who made the decision to fight that dragon on my own? Natsu was against it from the start. I was the one to convince him to go after Deliora. I was the one that thought I could handle it. And it was the right decision, regardless of the consequences. Deliora is dead.”
“I trusted him, he promised me he wouldn’t let anything happen to you.”
“And if he hadn’t healed me when he did or gotten me to help, that acid would have killed me. Natsu saved me, Sting, and you sent Acnologia after him, knowing full well he intends to kill him. Last time they fought, Natsu barely survived.”
“What was I supposed to have done when he showed up here?” Sting yelled, but once again, the bond gave him away. Rogue could feel his guilt, and that at least made him feel a little better. “None of us was a match for him. It was the only thing I could do to keep us alive.”
“We should have fought him or died trying.” Rogue remarked matter-of-factly, “It’s what Natsu would have done for us. It was our turn to be heroic, but we cowered instead.”
Rogue wondered if Sting had yet realized the enormity of what he’d done by giving Acnologia Natsu’s location. He hadn’t just led Acnologia to Atlas, Igneel, and Natsu, he’d also sent him after Erza, Gray, Lyon, Anna and everyone else who lived in Talos. Sting had pointed that abomination straight to the one place they had spent most of their lives guarding.
“I had to protect you, I couldn’t fail again,” tears were hiding in the corner of Sting’s eyes, and it was then that Rogue felt the honesty in Sting’s words.
All this time, he’d thought that Sting had been punishing Natsu, but that had never been it. Yes, Sting was angry at Natsu, and he did blame him for Rogue’s injuries, but in the end, it had come down to the fact that his mate had been in danger. He’d had no choice but to protect him, even at the cost of betraying his best friend.
“Do you think he’s already gotten there?” Rogue worried, wishing they had been able to warn their friends of what was coming.
“Probably,” Sting’s voice broke, and Rogue let go of some of the resentment he’d been harboring. There was nothing to be done, and even if he hadn’t been the one to give Acnologia the information, the truth was he hadn’t stopped Sting either. They were both complicit.
They sat in uneasy silence, and Rogue couldn’t help but remember all the times they’d sat like this when they were younger. Climbing out of their beds in the orphanage and sneaking outside, just so they could gaze at the stars, and talk excitedly about the places they would go and the people they would meet when they were older.
Not having any idea that a little boy would soon enter their lives and change everything they knew. That they would come to love that little boy almost as much as they loved each other, or that he would come to give them a home.
A home they could no longer return to. Even if by some miracle Talos remained unscathed from Acnologia’s attack, once word got out of what they’d done, they would no longer be welcome there.
Rogue put his arm around his mate, pulling him close, letting Sting shed his tears on his shoulder. He knew there was more to what Sting was feeling than what he’d said, but there was no point in pushing now. He could only hope that the red dragons were able to put an end to Acnologia before he could destroy Talos and that Natsu somehow managed to live through it once again. If only so they could try to earn his forgiveness.
0-0
In the following days, things between them began to improve slowly. Sting hovered less, Rogue asked for help more. They met each other halfway, and although they were still far from where they had once been, it helped ease Rogue’s worries. He’d even caught himself smiling at Sting a few times, though he couldn’t recall having seen Sting smile since Acnologia had come into their cave.
Weiss was feeling stronger, and with any luck, they’d be able to make it to Drak Aatsa, the island Natsu and Belserion had found, soon. They sat in a circle, planning the next leg of their journey when Skia tensed up. Sting and Rogue regarded him in confusion until Weiss explained.
“Atlas and Natsu are near, they seem to be moving slower than usual,” Weiss looked over at Sting to see how his son was reacting to the news, but Rogue didn’t have to. He could feel it.
The surge of emotions that Sting was feeling was overwhelming, and for a moment, they became his. Rogue grabbed Sting’s hand, lacing their fingers together and squeezing firmly.
Sting turned to him, looking paler than Rogue had ever seen him. For the first time since they’d met, Sting looked like he wanted to run from something, and it was very disconcerting. Rogue squeezed Sting’s hand again and offered him what he hoped was a reassuring smile.
They waited silently as Skiadrum went out to meet the red dragons. The minutes dragged on until they heard the sounds they’d been dreading. Three pairs of large wings getting ever closer. Skiadrum entered first, followed by Atlas Flame and then Natsu.
Atlas looked agitated, although it was clear from Skiadrum’s countenance that he hadn’t told them anything. Rogue looked at Natsu curiously, he hadn’t really seen him much since he’d tried to heal him after the dragon attack. The best word he could think of to describe the dragon was downcast. He vaguely wondered why Natsu would choose to be in his dragon form when he no longer needed to, but he was distracted by Sting’s reaction.
Where before Sting had looked nervous, now he seemed to be holding back tears, and all Rogue could feel from him was great sorrow. He looked between Sting and Natsu trying to figure out what was going on.
Weiss broke the uncomfortable silence, “Not that I’m not happy to see you, but what are you doing here?”
“It’s probably nothing for you to worry about, but Acnologia popped up in Talos a few days ago. Now that we know he’s active again, we want to go ahead and move you to Drak Aatsa. It’s not safe for you here on your own anymore.”
Atlas was his usual boisterous self, but for once, it sounded forced, and they all knew him well enough not to be fooled.
Skia and Weiss exchanged a nervous glance. Atlas was putting on a performance, but it wasn’t for their benefit. Rogue couldn’t help but notice that Natsu hadn’t looked at any of them since he’d entered, nor had he spoken a word. In fact, his whole demeanor was very unlike him, and Rogue started to get a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. What had happened?
Before he could say anything, Sting blurted out, “I’m sorry.”
Natsu turned toward him, looking puzzled by Sting’s outburst but finally speaking. “The thing with Rogue? You had every right to be upset. I broke my promise.”
Atlas looked confused as well, but he headed over to Rogue, “How are you feeling? Skia mentioned you’d been getting some pains, want me to take a look?”
Rogue didn’t really respond, too caught up in what was happening between Sting and Natsu, and Atlas took that as an affirmative. Rogue felt a soothing warmness envelop his legs, starting at his stumps and moving upward, and he grunted in appreciation.
“No,” Rogue could almost hear Sting swallowing, trying to build up the courage to say the next words, “Acnologia was already here.”
Rogue saw Natsu’s eyes widen in concern at Sting’s words, his eyes darting to check on each one of them, and it was almost too much for him to bear. His guilt had somehow gained physical form, residing in a large lump in his throat.
“I don’t understand, if Acnologia was here, how are you all fine?” Natsu looked them over again as if checking to see if he had missed something the first time.
“I told him what he wanted to know,” Sting explained, still not able to voice the words he knew he needed to say, and Rogue immediately understood why.
Once those words came out, his friendship with Natsu, something that had always been very important to him, would be over.
Natsu mouthed the word “oh” before once again falling into silence.
“Natsu, I’m sorry, I—”
Sting tried to say more, but Natsu waved him off, adding, “If it had been Gray, I would have done the same thing.”
There was something about the way he said Gray’s name that worried at Rogue, and he wanted to ask, to say anything, but instead, Natsu was the one to speak.
“I’m glad you’re alright.” And with that, Natsu turned around and left the cave, flying off.
Sting ran after him, having to stop at the entrance, “NATSU PLEASE, I’M SORRY!” he yelled through his tears, but there was no response.
“Settle down,” Atlas advised as he sat comfortably between Skiadrum and Weisslogia.
“Aren’t you going after him?” Rogue asked, surprised by how calm Atlas seemed to be.
“Do you really think there is anything I could say that would help?” Atlas challenged, and when Rogue had no response, he snorted. “He needs to sort this out on his own. Get your stuff ready, we move out tomorrow.”
“What happened?” Sting demanded.
“Let it go,” Atlas growled, his previous calm disappearing in an instant. This Atlas was angry, so much so, in fact, that Skia and Weiss were glancing at him nervously.
Sting knelt in front of Atlas, “Please, I need to know.”
“You don’t need me to tell you anything, Sting. You already know what happened.” Atlas wouldn’t elaborate further, but that seemed to be enough for Sting to crumble.
He left the cave without saying a word to anyone, and Rogue could only stare after him in confused shock. Then everything clicked into place.
“I’m gonna go check on him,” Rogue announced before morphing into his shadow form and traveling back up the mountain to the spot where he knew he’d find Sting. There wasn’t really anywhere else he would have gone.
He could hear loud grunts as well as squelching thuds the higher up he got, and winced internally, worried about what he would find. Rogue reached the shelf only to see Sting pummeling the bare rock of the mountain face with his fists, the gloves he liked to wear already stained with his blood.
“Stop it!” Rogue yelled, materializing as close to Sting as he dared. He leaned against the rock, not daring to sit on the edge at the moment as it was windy.
Sting did stop for a moment but thought better of it, continuing to pelt the rock as hard as he could.
“I said, stop it! You aren’t helping anything by doing this,” Rogue called out once again, and when Sting still didn’t listen, he took a risk. He once again shifted into his shadow form. Only this time, grabbing on to Sting from behind, before materializing again. He hoped Sting didn’t fight him because he was in no condition to go up against him.
“Are you out of your mind?!” Sting snapped, but he stopped what he was doing. His breath came out in ragged pants, and his hair was dripping with sweat, but he let Rogue restrain him, probably realizing he would only hurt him if he struggled.
Rogue loosened his hold, and Sting maneuvered him to his front, sitting both of them down. He wrapped his arms around Rogue and pulled him into his chest, which was the most intimate contact they’d shared in a long time.
Rogue removed Sting’s gloves to examine his hands and hissed, “I think you broke one.”
Sting’s only response was to laugh bitterly, “Yeah, I probably did. I deserve it, though.”
“Please tell me what’s going on, I know you’ve been keeping something from me, I just didn’t realize it had to do with Natsu.”
Sting remained silent for a few minutes before sighing, “To think I gave Gray the whole if you hurt him, I will end you speech. What a joke. I was the one who hurt them in the end.”
“Sting?”
“Can I just hold you for a bit? I promise I’ll tell you everything I know.”
“You can always hold me, dork, I’m your mate. I’m not going anywhere.” Rogue reassured him, raising his hand to touch Sting’s face, even though he couldn’t see it. He could feel Sting’s body relax behind him at his words, and he tried to burrow deeper into Sting’s warmth.
He wished they could go back inside, but he had a feeling if he suggested it, it would break this peace. Instead, he waited impatiently for Sting to speak.
“Natsu’s dragon side had been trying to take control of his body, it’s why we noticed all those changes at first. After he killed that wood dragon, we found out there was a possibility he might not be able to change back into his human form. The longer he stayed in his dragon form, the worse it would be. He didn’t want you guys to worry, so he made me promise to keep it a secret.”
Rogue began to shake with rage, That fucking idiot! How dare he keep something so important from them? Then again, he supposed he shouldn’t be too surprised. Natsu had been forced to keep secrets for most of his life.
“After the fight with Acnologia, it only got worse. Natsu had a tough time changing from one form to the other, and his body was covered in red scales wherever Grandine and Atlas had healed him. Natsu said it was like the magic was resisting him. Before he killed Deliora, Atlas had told him his dragon self had asserted itself to the point he didn’t think Natsu had many transformations left in him. So Natsu decided to wait until he went home to change into his human form. He had no intention of changing back until Gray had passed.”
“Oh.”
“He’s a dragon, Rogue. Now and forever. I did that, I ruined his life. Now he can’t ever go back to Gray. I took away the only thing he’d ever wanted.”
‘Sting—”
“No! Don’t tell me I did my best, or that I couldn’t have known. That’s bullshit, I knew. I fucking knew, but I did it anyway.”
“I wasn’t going to,” Rogue lied, he couldn’t believe that all of this had been happening under his very nose and he hadn’t realized it. He was ashamed to realize he’d been so caught up in all their issues he hadn’t spared a thought to Natsu. And it wasn’t like he could even get mad at Sting for not telling him, not when he’d done the same.
Natsu had once been just like them. Just a lonely little boy who’d wanted a family as desperately as they had. He’d withheld so many things from them over the years because Natsu’s love had always been about loyalty and protection. He’d watched over all of them, like the dragon he was, but refused to worry them with his own problems.
Rogue found himself thinking of Gray, the way he’d always looked at Natsu when he thought no one was watching, it had been so endearing, especially given how gruff he acted most of the time. Rogue was filled with pity at the thought that his friend would never experience what he and Sting had. Even worse, given the fact they were soulmates, Gray would never find anyone to replace what Natsu meant to him. It was a cruel fate for two beings who were so in love.
It made him appreciate something he and Sting had both lost sight of some time ago. Even though it often felt like nothing had gone right for them since they’d left Talos, they were alive, and they still had each other. And for that, he was eternally grateful.
He nudged Sting’s arm, “Can you turn me around?”
Sting lifted him without much effort, turning Rogue to face him until he found a comfortable position for both of them. Rogue wrapped his arms around Sting’s neck for support. He wanted to see Sting’s face when he told him what he wanted to say.
“I’m sorry you had to go through that alone,” Rogue declared earnestly, “and I wish you had trusted me to keep your secret. But I understand.”
“Nothing that’s happened changes anything between us. I love you, just as I always have,” Rogue tried to smile through his sadness, nuzzling Sting’s forehead with his, “And I know you feel this is all your fault, but it’s not. I was right there with you. Like I always am, and I’ll always be.”
Sting cupped Rogue’s face in his bloodied hands, “I don’t deserve you.”
Rogue chuckled, “Nope, but here we are anyway.”
“Thank you.”
Rogue leaned forward, brushing his lips against his mate’s gently. More than anything, it was a promise on his part to work on their problems and move forward together. When he felt Sting respond in kind, it awakened feelings that had lain dormant inside him for too long.
Sting broke away first, pulling Rogue into an embrace before whispering in his ear, “I love you so much.”
“I know,” Rogue replied simply, squeezing Sting tightly against him. They continued to hold the embrace until they were both shivering with cold.
“We should probably head back down, Weiss and Skia are going to worry soon, and you should really have Atlas look at your hands.”
Sting groaned, “Might as well give the sadistic bastard the satisfaction.”
Rogue snorted, “He’s worked on me before, he’s not so bad.”
“Yeah that’s cause he likes you, I rather think I’m at the bottom of his list at the moment.”
Rogue had no response to that, so he remained silent.
“How am I ever going to make up for this?”
“I don’t think either of us can, all we can do is be there for them if they let us, and try to accept that they might not.”
Sting frowned as he thought about Rogue’s words, “I guess you’re right.” He peered at his mate shyly, “Together?”
“Together,” Rogue agreed, and holding on to Sting carefully, he shifted them, uniting them in his shadows. He sped down the mountain, welcoming the rush of being able to move on his own. He snorted as Sting complained.
“This is not what I had in mind.”
A/N: I am so happy I got to participate in both weeks this year. To be honest, I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to participate in this one, due to other projects, but rarely have the stars aligned so completely for something. Not only did the week fall on the same date as the next scheduled update for Red Dragon, but it was also a chapter that dealt mostly with Sting and Rogue and the prompts fit the events perfectly, so who was I to ignore fate? Hope you enjoy. If you are interested, the chapter is published in its entirety on AO3.
It really is exciting to see so many events for Stingue, I’m looking forward to many more.
